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Reflection: General Audino on the Car Bomb in Erbil Today

Commentary by Brig. Gen. Ernie Audino, US Army (Ret.)In reflection of the car bomb attack today outside Erbil Governate building at noon in the Kurdish region of Iraq, killing four and wounding at least 29 people (Rudaw)

As pyschologically shocking as such singular attacks are, they remain militarily insignificant. If anything, and if Kurdish history is any indicator, this will only further energize the Kurdish will to destroy the jihadist groups responsible for such depravity.

It’s important to keep in mind these types of attacks have been exceedingly rare in Kurdish-controlled areas, but that they have begun to occur at all corroborates the effect of the Kurdish peshmerga having largely seized the battlefield initiative from Daesh/ISIS/IS. It is now the peshmerga, not Daesh/ISIS/IS, who typically determine the time, place and character of the fighting.

The peshmerga continue to gain ground, and when they do, ISIS has been forced to resort to emplacing IEDs and booby-traps to disrupt the pursuing peshmerga elements. This is the type of tactic used by the militarily weak in the face of overwhelming combat power.

Still, the Kurdish ability to press this fight deep to complete the destruction of Daesh/ISIS/IS is being hampered by serious mismatches in weapons and supplies. Yes, the USA and others have been trying to get this much needed gear into Kurdish hands, and this has been greatly appreciated, but my Kurdish friends tell me none has been sent directly to them. Rather, the gear is being sent to Baghdad first, which in turn blocks anything they don't want in the hands of the peshmerga. As there really is no war against Daesh/ISIS/IS without the peshmerga, this is no way to win a war.

Image: The historical ancient Citadel in Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq, Est. 2300 BCThe Erbil governate building hit today is next to this monument. According to Al Jazeera America: "Mayor Nawzad Hadi told the state-run Rudaw TV channel that the bomber tried to enter the citadel grounds but failed, so he detonated his explosives-laden car outside the complex."

Brigadier General Ernest C. Audino, US Army (Ret), currently serves as Senior Advisor and Director of Government Relations to the Kurdistan National Assembly of Syria. He also serves as SVP of Military Market Development for Raydon Corporation, a world leader in state-of-the-art virtual training capabilities for domestic and international defense and security forces.

General Audino graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1983 and retired in 2011 after a 28-year Army career. He is an experienced combat operator with multiple assignments in armor, cavalry, infantry and Stryker units. Other key assignments include service as an Army Congressional Fellow in the US Senate, duty as the Executive Assistant to the Vice Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Director of Nuclear Support at the US Defense Threat Reduction Agency. His last assignment was as the Deputy Director of Operations for Headquarters, US Army, in the Pentagon.

He considers his most significant assignment to be his service in Iraq where he commanded a team of combat advisors embedded in 3rd Infantry Brigade, 4th Division Iraqi Army. His brigade was formed entirely from Kurdish peshmerga (guerrilla units) re-missioned to conduct counterinsurgency operations.

His education includes:

Bachelor of Science, United States Military Academy, West Point

Master of Law, Cum Laude, Vermont Law School

Juris Doctorate, Vermont Law School

Master of National Security and Strategic Studies, US National War College

Press Inquiries

General Audino is available for media interviews and speaking engagements. Please contact: velma@abscommunityresearch.org